DOCSLIB.ORG

The Lost Treasures of Ipiutak Jacques Marc Underwater Archaeological Society of British Columbia, 2527 Mill Hill Road, Victoria, BC V9B 4X5; [email protected]

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
The Lost Treasures of Ipiutak Jacques Marc Underwater Archaeological Society of British Columbia, 2527 Mill Hill Road, Victoria, BC V9B 4X5; Jmarc@Shaw.Ca THE LOST TREASURES OF IPIUTAK Jacques Marc Underwater Archaeological Society of British Columbia, 2527 Mill Hill Road, Victoria, BC V9B 4X5; [email protected] ABSTRACT The Ipiutak culture of northwestern Alaska ranks among the most mysterious and intriguing traditions of the northern world. The site, excavated in the late 1930s and early 1940s by Danish archaeologist Helge Larsen and American archaeologists Froelich Rainey and J. Louis Giddings, is located near the modern village of Point Hope. Artifacts recovered from the initial excavations included jet-inlaid ivory death masks, ivory carvings, dance pendants, hunting implements, and more. A shipment of the finest artifacts was sent to the American Museum of Natural History in New York to be photographed for publication purposes. These Ipiutak materials were shipped back to the University of Alaska Museum in September 1946. In November of that year, the U.S. Post Office informed the Museum of Natural History that a letter and specimen list sent two days in advance of the artifacts were lost when a U.S. Army Transport ship sank. In the summer of 2003, the Canadian Coast Guard (CCG) received a re- port that something was producing an oil sheen on the water surface about 1.35 nautical miles south- east of James Point on the west side of Grenville Channel, British Columbia. In October 2003, the CCG deployed a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) to investigate the source of the pollution. During their inspection they determined that the source of the oil was a shipwreck. Research established that the ship was most likely that of the U.S. Army Transport Brigadier General M. G. Zalinski. This paper will investigate whether she is the missing army transport that was transporting the Ipiutak artifacts. THE IPIUTAK SITE The Ipiutak archaeological site, situated on an accretional Rainey 1948:5). At the time, Larsen was a curator in the spit near the modern village of Point Hope, Alaska, has re- Danish National Museum while Rainey was a professor ceived considerable publicity and provoked speculation on of anthropology at the University of Alaska. Larsen and the culture of the inhabitants, resulting not least from the Rainey, accompanied by J. Louis Giddings, made their extensive habitation remains and the variety and quantity first expedition to Point Hope and Ipiutak in the summer of carved ivory and other artworks (Bandi 1969; Giddings of 1939 and continued their work in the field and in the 1967; Hilton et al. 2014). The site was identified in 1939 laboratory for three years. In the summer of 1941 they were by archaeologists Helge Larsen of Denmark and Froelich joined by Harry L. Shapiro of the American Museum of Rainey of the United States, who were searching for traces Natural History (AMNH), who supervised the excavation of early “Eskimo” settlements. They chose to examine the of the Tigara burials and made anthropometric measure- Ipiutak site (Fig. 1) after recalling a comment made by ments of the Inuit then living at Point Hope. Danish anthropologist Knud Rasmussen that the old vil- The archaeological work at Ipiutak began on areas lage of Tigara at Point Hope was one of the largest and where cultural material was exposed, then house sites most interesting sites along the Arctic Coast (Larsen and were studied, and finally graves were excavated (Giddings 88 the lost treasures of ipiutak 1967; Larsen and Rainey 1948). Restricted to one area of Museum, and the American Museum of Natural History the site, the elaborate nature of the graves at Ipiutak was (AMNH) (West 1978). The “best” artistic specimens and uncharacteristic of the Inuit (Larson and Rainey 1948:61; other artifacts to be illustrated in Larson and Rainey’s re- Mason 2016). Not only were the grave accessories dif- port, Ipiutak and the Arctic Whale Hunting Culture (1948), ferent from those of other known Bering Strait cultures, were sent to the AMNH to be photographed for the pro- the manner of some burials was also remarkable. Some duction of plates to be inserted into the report. Later, graves held bodies with composite ivory “death masks” when these items were shipped back to the University of (Fig. 2) and skulls with eyes of inlaid jet and ivory. Some Alaska Museum on a U.S. Army Transport (USAT) ship, graves held mummified birds or other animals, again with they were lost at sea. eyes inlaid with obsidian. In several graves, the human body was buried with walrus bones; in four others, hu- LOSS OF IPIUTAK ARTIFACTS mans were buried with dog skeletons (Larsen and Rainey 1948:61, 248). The excavations at Ipiutak produced some To determine what happened to the artifacts has meant 10,000 artifacts and 500 skeletons, and Rainey estimated reviewing the correspondence record about the artifacts. the site could have supported a population of 5000 people. The trail of clues begins at the AMNH. On September 16, Radiocarbon assays suggest that the site was founded prior 1946, Bella Weitzner, associate curator of ethnology at the to ad 600, with an upper age limit in the ninth century AMNH, wrote a letter to Ivar Skarland at the University (Mason 2006). of Alaska. She apologized for the delay in returning the World War II interrupted the research and analysis artifacts and explained that with Larsen and Rainey out of work: Rainey entered U.S. government service in 1942, the country, the task of checking the material belonging to and Giddings joined the U.S. Navy in 1943. Rainey’s the three institutions had fallen to her, it had been a long absence placed the bulk of the library research and the and drawn-out task, and she had finally reached a stage of writing on Larsen, who was on the staff of the University of Alaska Museum from 1943 to 1945. In 1945, Larsen divided the large collection of Ipiutak material housed in the University of Alaska Museum into specimens to be retained by the University of Alaska Museum, the Danish Figure 2. Burial mask from lpiutak grave site, published as plate 55 in Larsen and Rainey (1948). Courtesy of the Division of Figure 1. Location of Ipiutak and Tigara sites at Point Hope and Anthropology, American Museum of Natu- Grenville Channel. Map by Robert Clark. ral History Catalog #60.1/7713 A-K. Alaska Journal of Anthropology vol. 15, nos. 1&2 (2017) 89 completion that made it possible to return the specimens LOSS OF USAT BRIGADIER GENERAL belonging to the university. Her letter continues: M. G. ZALINSKI You will find that the specimens have been wrapped and labeled according to their plate and figure The Brigadier General M. G. Zalinski was originally numbers. Since we always use the catalog num- launched as the steel freighter Lake Frohna in July 1919. bers as part of the record when specimens are pub- She was an ocean freighter of the typical three-island, lished, it would be necessary for you to give us the four-hatch, two-mast type (Fig. 3). Her registered length University of Alaska catalog numbers for each one was 251 feet, the width 43.5 feet, and the depth 26.16 feet. of these pieces. Will you be good enough, therefore She had a gross tonnage of 2616 and net tonnage of 1611. to enter your catalog number in the proper place on each of the work sheets for the plates, a set of which When the United States entered the Second World we are forwarding with this letter? Please return War in December 1941, the U.S. Army’s Quartermaster the sheets to me when you have filled in the catalog Corps requisitioned the ship and renamed her USAT number. (Weitzner 1946a) Brigadier General M. G. Zalinski. The transport ship was Weitzner (1946b) wrote a follow-up letter to Skarland then put into service running supplies north to Alaska out on November 7 inquiring if the Ipiutak materials had of Seattle, its port of embarkation throughout World War reached the University of Alaska safely. She also requested II and after the war. The Puget Sound Pilots movements that the list of specimen numbers be returned, so that cards reveal the final movements of the Brigadier General the captions for the photographs taken for Larsen and M. G. Zalinski. She sailed from Seattle on June 8, 1946, Rainey’s report could be completed (Weitzner 1946b). returned, and then left again for Alaska on July 10. The University of Alaska archaeologist J. Louis Giddings re- cargo ship was back in Seattle on August 9 and left again sponded on behalf of Skarland on November 11. Giddings on August 23. (1946) explained that a West Coast shipping strike had Archie McLaren, the purser on board Zalinski, re- held up express and freight shipments to the Territory of called that his ship left Seattle for the final time in the Alaska for two months, and cessation of the strike was early-morning hours on September 26, 1946, bound for not yet in sight. He indicated he would try to provide Whittier, Alaska (McLaren 1988). The Zalinski was re- the requested information as soon as the Ipiutak material ported to be carrying 1,115 tons of food and 778 tons was received Weitzner (1946c) wrote back on November of general cargo. Included in this cargo were household 18 stating that “unfortunately a day or two after I wrote goods for military personnel and a full load of fresh fruit to Mr. Skarland on November 7th we were notified by and produce. John Fitzgerald from the National Archives 1 the Post Office that the army transport carrying the letter in Seattle found the USAT Ocean Manifest.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Biological and Cultural Evidence for Social Maturation at Point Hope, Alaska: Integrating Data from Archaeological Mortuary Practices and Human Skeletal Biology
    BIOLOGICAL AND CULTURAL EVIDENCE FOR SOCIAL MATURATION AT POINT HOPE, ALASKA: INTEGRATING DATA FROM ARCHAEOLOGICAL MORTUARY PRACTICES AND HUMAN SKELETAL BIOLOGY by Lauryn Justice A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of George Mason University in Partial Fulfillment of The Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts Anthropology Committee: ___________________________________________ Director ___________________________________________ ___________________________________________ ___________________________________________ Department Chairperson ___________________________________________ Dean, College of Humanities and Social Sciences Date: _____________________________________ Spring Semester 2017 George Mason University Fairfax, VA Biological and cultural evidence for social maturation at Point Hope, Alaska: Integrating data from archaeological mortuary practices and human skeletal biology A Thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts at George Mason University by Lauryn Justice Bachelor of Arts University of North Carolina – Wilmington, 2014 Director: Daniel Temple Department of Anthropology for Master’s Thesis Spring Semester 2017 George Mason University Fairfax, VA ii Copyright 2017 Lauryn Justice All Rights Reserved iii DEDICATION For my grandparents, David and Claudia Clay, whose unwavering love and constant support makes me believe I can achieve anything. iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS My deepest thanks are owed to my advisor, Dr. Daniel Temple, for introducing me to the field of bioarchaeology in 2013. I am honored to have had the privilege to work with him during my undergraduate and graduate careers. He is the most brilliant man I have ever known and the knowledge he imparted me has allowed me to grow and become the scholar I am today. My committee members, Dr. Haagen Klaus and Dr. Nawa Sugiyama, also deserve acknowledgement and thanks.
    [Show full text]
  • The Foragers of Point Hope Point of Foragers the the Ipiutak and Tigara Archaeological Sites, the and Libby W
    Hilton, Auerbach, and Cowgill K SBEA Cambridge Studies in C Y The Foragers of Biological and Evolutionary Anthropology M C At the very tip of the Lisburne Peninsula, CHARLES E. HILTON is an assistant professor in Point Hope Point Hope, Alaska represents one of the best the Department of Anthropology at the University of North Carolina, Greensboro. examples of northernmost cultures. Yielding The Biology and Archaeology of one of the largest samples of northern latitude BENJAMIN M. AUERBACH is an assistant skeletal remains in the world it has also professor in the Department of Anthropology at Humans on the Edge of the provided crucial evidence for understanding The University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Alaskan Arctic past foraging lifeways in this remote environment; as well as human, cultural, and LIBBY W. COWGILL is an assistant professor in the Anthropology Department at the University of biological variation in general. Presenting a Edited by Missouri, Columbia. set of anthropological analyses on the human Charles E. Hilton, Benjamin M. Auerbach, skeletal remains and cultural material from The Foragers of Point Hope the Ipiutak and Tigara archaeological sites, The and Libby W. Cowgill Foragers of Point Hope sheds new light on the original excavations from 1939 to 1941. Modern archaeological theory, dental microwear analysis, biomechanics, paleopathology, and population modeling are all employed, bringing these human remains to the forefront of biological anthropology research and addressing debates about subsistence, warfare, activity, and health. Finally, these analyses are integrated into current anthropological perspectives to address the cultural, archaeological, behavioral, and ecological components of human foraging systems. Cover illustration (front): [copy to follow]; EVOLUTION (back): [copy to follow].
    [Show full text]
  • History, Language, and Culture by the National Park Service
    NORTH SLOPE BOROUGH COMPREHENSIVE PLAN 2019 — 2039 Part I: North Slope Borough Culture and Planning PAGE 1 NORTH SLOPE BOROUGH PART I | CHAPTER 1: HISTORY, LANGUAGE & CULTURE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN 2019 — 2039 PAGE 2 NORTH SLOPE BOROUGH PART I | CHAPTER 1: HISTORY, LANGUAGE & CULTURE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN 2019 — 2039 History, Culture, and Government PAGE 3 NORTH SLOPE BOROUGH PART I | CHAPTER 1: HISTORY, LANGUAGE & CULTURE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN 2019 — 2039 This page is intentionally left blank PAGE 4 NORTH SLOPE BOROUGH PART I | CHAPTER 1: HISTORY, LANGUAGE & CULTURE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN 2019 — 2039 Chapter 1. History, Culture, and Government documented human habitation of North NORTH SLOPE HISTORY America. Scientists theorize that the Mesa Site The Iñupiat of the North Slope have a rich was a lookout point for hunters who may have cultural history that is evident in both the living been in search of game that is now extinct, such traditions and numerous archaeological sites on as bison or even mammoth. Since there is no the North Slope. Some villages on the North evidence of later cultures using the site, Slope have been occupied continuously for archaeologists have named this culture the Mesa thousands of years, such as Point Hope, while Culture. The style of weapons found suggest the others were more recently founded as year- Mesa Site was used by a Paleo-Indian culture, of round village sites, such as Atqasuk. However, which no convincing evidence has been found all of the land on the North Slope is rich with elsewhere in Alaska prior to this discovery. Much history and culture evidenced by abundant remains to be learned about this discovery and archeological sites across the entirety of the about the people who hunted in this area borough’s frozen tundra.
    [Show full text]
  • Working Together to Preserve the Past
    CUOURAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT information for Parks, Federal Agencies, Trtoian Tribes, States, Local Governments, and %he Privale Sector <yt CRM TotLUME 18 NO. 7 1995 Working Together to Preserve the Past U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR National Park Service Cultural Resources PUBLISHED BY THE VOLUME 18 NO. 7 1995 NATIONAL PARK SERVICE Contents ISSN 1068-4999 To promote and maintain high standards for preserving and managing cultural resources Working Together DIRECTOR to Preserve the Past Roger G. Kennedy ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR Katherine H. Stevenson The Historic Contact in the Northeast EDITOR National Historic Landmark Theme Study Ronald M. Greenberg An Overview 3 PRODUCTION MANAGER Robert S. Grumet Karlota M. Koester A National Perspective 4 GUEST EDITOR Carol D. Shull Robert S. Grumet ADVISORS The Most Important Things We Can Do 5 David Andrews Lloyd N. Chapman Editor, NPS Joan Bacharach Museum Registrar, NPS The NHL Archeological Initiative 7 Randall J. Biallas Veletta Canouts Historical Architect, NPS John A. Bums Architect, NPS Harry A. Butowsky Shantok: A Tale of Two Sites 8 Historian, NPS Melissa Jayne Fawcett Pratt Cassity Executive Director, National Alliance of Preservation Commissions Pemaquid National Historic Landmark 11 Muriel Crespi Cultural Anthropologist, NPS Robert L. Bradley Craig W. Davis Archeologist, NPS Mark R. Edwards The Fort Orange and Schuyler Flatts NHL 15 Director, Historic Preservation Division, Paul R. Huey State Historic Preservation Officer, Georgia Bruce W Fry Chief of Research Publications National Historic Sites, Parks Canada The Rescue of Fort Massapeag 20 John Hnedak Ralph S. Solecki Architectural Historian, NPS Roger E. Kelly Archeologist, NPS Historic Contact at Camden NHL 25 Antoinette J.
    [Show full text]
  • Birds, Needles, and Iron: Late Holocene Prehistoric Alaskan
    birds, needles, and iron: late holocene prehistoric alaskan grooving techniques Carol Gelvin-Reymiller Department of Anthropology, University of Alaska Fairbanks, PO Box 757720, Fairbanks, AK 99775-7720; [email protected] Joshua Reuther University of Arizona and Northern Land Use Research, Inc., PO Box 83990, Fairbanks, AK 99708 [email protected] abstract This article considers questions in prehistoric technology by examining organic artifacts from sev- eral Alaska Late Holocene sites, including Croxton Site Locality J at Tukuto Lake, western Brooks Range. Examples of bone needle “cores” and needles crafted from large bird humeri are measured and microscopically examined to distinguish possible differences in tools and reduction techniques. Tool handles used to accomplish grooving, including “engraving tool handles,” as well as differences between iron and stone bits, are discussed. Archaeometric data, avian ecology, and ethnographic ac- counts are explored to investigate aspects of needle manufacture, the introduction of iron, and the potential relationships people had to these materials and objects. keywords: Avifauna, needles, bone, technology, Ipiutak, engraving introduction Grooving technologies, the processes by which organic In addition to the analysis of bird bone cores and the materials were divided and shaped, were frequently put to nature of bird bone itself, we consider the construction use by arctic and subarctic cultures. These processes have of tools required to accomplish grooving, including “en- been studied by archaeologists to some degree and con- graving tool handles” (sic Larsen and Rainey 1948) and tinue to be of interest for understanding tool manufac- other handles, as well as bits associated with grooving ture. Semenov’s well-known Prehistoric Technology (1976 techniques.
    [Show full text]
  • Le Plant and Driftwood Use at Cape Espenberg, Alaska
    Thule Plant And Driftwood Use At Cape Espenberg, Alaska Item Type Thesis Authors Crawford, Laura J. Download date 28/09/2021 20:16:32 Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/11122/8578 THULE PLANT AND DRIFTWOOD USE AT CAPE ESPENBERG, ALASKA By Laura J. Crawford RECOMMENDED: £,L Advisory Committee Chair Advisory Committee Chair Chair, Department of Anthropology APPROVED: Interim Dean, College of Liberal Arts A: Dean of the Graduate School THULE PLANT AND DRIFTWOOD USE AT CAPE ESPENBERG, ALASKA A THESIS Presented to the Faculty Of the University of Alaska Fairbanks In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of MASTER OF ARTS By Laura J. Crawford, B.A. Fairbanks, Alaska August 2012 © 2012 Laura J. Crawford UMI Number: 1521779 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. UMI 1521779 Published by ProQuest LLC 2012. Copyright in the Dissertation held by the Author. Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest LLC 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 Abstract This thesis addresses the question of Thule plant and woody fuel use at Cape Espenberg, Alaska between approximately AD 1500 and 1700. The objective of this thesis is to determine how the Thule at Cape Espenberg were using various plant species, including edible plant species and fiielwood species.
    [Show full text]
  • Alaska Park Science Anchorage, Alaska Connections to Natural and Cultural Resource Studies in Alaska’S National Parks
    National Park Service U.S. Department of Interior Alaska Support Office Alaska Park Science Anchorage, Alaska Connections to Natural and Cultural Resource Studies in Alaska’s National Parks Summer 2003 Table of Contents Return to Glacier Bay ________________________ 5 The Wales/Deering Subsistence Producer Analysis Project __________________ 13 Chukchi Cape Krusenstern Bear Human Interactions at Glacier Bay Sea National Monument National Park and Preserve: Conflict Risk Assessment __________________ 21 Deering Wales Red Light District Ethnohistory Bering Land Bridge in Seward, Alaska __________________________ 27 National Preserve Unlocking the Secrets of K A Lake Clark Sockeye Salmon ________________ 33 Norton Sound A S Pioneer Arctic Archeologist L J. Louis Giddings____________________________ 39 A Science News ____________________________ 44-51 Glacier Bay Alaska Park Science Lake Clark National Park National Park and Preserve http://www.nps.gov/akso/AKScience2003spring.pdf and Preserve Editor: Monica Shah Seward Copy Editor: Thetus Smith Kenai Fjords National Park Project Lead: Robert Winfree, Regional Science Advisor, email: [email protected] Park Science Journal Board: Ted Birkedal, Team Leader for Cultural Resources Bristol Bay Alex Carter, Team Manager for Biological Resources Team Gulf of Alaska Joy Geiselman, Deputy Chief, Biological Science Office USGS Alaska Science Center John Quinley, Assistant Regional Director for Communications Jane Tranel, Public Affairs Specialist Ralph Tingey, Associate Regional Director for Resources and Education Robert Winfree, Regional Science Advisor and Chair of Journal Board Funded By: The Natural Resources Challenge Initiative Printed with soy based ink Produced By: Parks Featured in this Issue Sharing Alaska’s Natural and Cultural Heritage Cover photograph © Randall Davis 2 About the Authors Herbert Anungazuk is an anthropologist for the Alaska Support Office, National Park Service.
    [Show full text]
  • Cultural Ties
    National Park Service National Park Service First Class Mail C U L T U R A L T I E S U.S. Department of the Interior U.S. Department of the Interior Postage and Fees A NEWSLETTER OF THE ALASKA NATIONAL REGISTER PROGRAM P A I D City, State Permit Number Alaska Support Office Cultural Resources 2525 Gambell St. #107 Anchorage, AK 99503 5travelling 5cover story 5featured 5 team 5news briefs, 5 artistic exhibit, p. 2 continues, p. 3 nhls, p. 4-5 notes, p. 6 p. 6 artifacts, back page Fragile Treasures Linking Generation to Generation By Amber Ridington s an intern at the be willing to be National Park Service i n t e r v i e w e d A Alaska Support Office a b o u t t h e i r during the summer of 2001, I e x p e r i e n c e s, worked on one component of memories and a National Historic Landmarks interpretations of (NHLs) educational outreach t h e project, a traveling exhibit archaeological EXPERIENCE YOUR AMERICA about the six prehistoric NHLs s i t e s . J o n a s that will be taken to the Inupiat proved to be an villages adjacent to the NHL i n v a l u a b l e sites. The sites are Birnirk site g u i d e , (Piqniq)*, Barrow; Ipiutak Site interpreter, and Illustrated Artifacts: Meet Mark Luttrell (Tikigak), Pt. Hope; Wales sites also transcriber (Kingigen); Iyatayet site of the interviews, By Kylia McDaniel Shaktoolik and Elim; Cape mostly recorded Krusenstern Archaeological in Inupiaq.
    [Show full text]
  • INFORMATION to USERS This Manuscript Has Been Reproduced from the Microfilm Master
    Technological development and culture change on St. Lawrence Island: A functional typology of toggle harpoon heads Item Type Thesis Authors Lewis, Michael A. Download date 02/10/2021 05:12:37 Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/11122/9434 INFORMATION TO USERS This manuscript has been reproduced from the microfilm master. UMI films the text directly from the original or copy submitted. Thus, some thesis and dissertation copies are in typewriter face, while others may be from any type of computer printer. The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleedthrough, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send UMI a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. • Oversize materials (e.g., maps, drawings, charts) are reproduced by sectioning the original, beginning at the upper left-hand comer and continuing from left to right in equal sections with small overlaps. Each original is also photographed in one exposure and is included in reduced form at the back of the book. Photographs included in the original manuscript have been reproduced xerographically in this copy. Higher quality 6" x 9" black and white photographic prints are available for any photographs or illustrations appearing in this copy for an additional charge. Contact UMI directly to order. A Bell & Howell Information Company 300 North Zeeb Road.
    [Show full text]
  • Incisal Dental Microwear of the Prehistoric Point Hope Communities: a Dietary and Cultural Synthesis
    Western Michigan University ScholarWorks at WMU Master's Theses Graduate College 12-2006 Incisal Dental Microwear of the Prehistoric Point Hope Communities: A Dietary and Cultural Synthesis Kristin L. Krueger Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/masters_theses Part of the Social and Cultural Anthropology Commons Recommended Citation Krueger, Kristin L., "Incisal Dental Microwear of the Prehistoric Point Hope Communities: A Dietary and Cultural Synthesis" (2006). Master's Theses. 3976. https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/masters_theses/3976 This Masters Thesis-Open Access is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate College at ScholarWorks at WMU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Master's Theses by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks at WMU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. INCISAL DENTAL MICROWEAR OF THE PREHISTORIC POINT HOPE COMMUNITIES: A DIETARY AND CULTURAL SYNTHESIS by Kristin L. Krueger A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of The Graduate College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts Department of Anthropology Western Michigan University Kalamazoo, Michigan December 2006 © 2006 Kristin L. Krueger ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First and foremost, I would like to thank my parents, Steven and Marla Krueger, foralways reminding me of the "Prime Directive" and for being two of the wisest, most supportive parents. Thank you for teaching me the balance between working hard and having fun. Loveto youse, you ole things! To my sister and brother-in-law, Jenny and Jeff Krueger, for loving me no matter what color hair I had. Also, thank you for not claiming me as a dependent on your taxes during my years in Madison, even though I'm sure I qualified! To my fiance,Dan, for being my calm and taking good care of me even when my independent self doesn't think I need it.
    [Show full text]
  • 6 the Archaeology of Human- Dog Relations in Northwest Alaska
    The archaeology of human- dog relations in Northwest Alaska Item Type Book chapter Authors Hill, Erica Citation Hill, E. (2018). The archaeology of human–dog relations in Northwest Alaska. In Dogs in the North (pp. 99-116). Routledge. Publisher Routledge Download date 02/10/2021 23:24:27 Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/11122/9656 87 6 The archaeology of human- dog relations in Northwest Alaska Erica Hill Some 1500 years ago, on a gravel spit extending into the Chukchi Sea, people living at the site of Ipiutak buried several members of their community. They excavated a shallow pit in the gravel and laid out a human adult, likely a woman. She was positioned on her back with her legs extended. An infant was placed at her right shoulder and she was provided with a stone knife and two chisels. Next, a dog was lowered into the grave. The dog’s body was positioned along the woman’s right leg; its head rested on her thigh, while the hindquar- ters covered her feet. Burial 132 at Ipiutak (Larsen and Rainey 1948 : 250), described here, provides a glimpse of an unusual practice in Alaska prehistory— the burial of a human and a dog together ( Figure 6.1 ). Such burials demonstrate that the lives of dogs and humans have been entangled for nearly two thousand years along the coast of Alaska, where they cohabited until around AD 1000, when their relationship intensifi ed and became one of codependency. Together humans and dogs developed the technologies and practices of the Thule lifeway, which enabled them to hunt and travel quickly and effi ciently as they colonized the North American Arctic.
    [Show full text]
  • The Significance of Dog Traction for the Analysis of Prehistoric Arctic Societies
    ARTICLES THE SIGNIFICANCE OF DOG TRACTION FOR THE ANALYSIS OF PREHISTORIC ARCTIC SOCIETIES William L. Sheppard Sheppard Research, 980 SW Hillcroft Ave., Portland, OR 97225. Sheppard @ hevanet.com. Abstract: Dog traction was a central element of Eskimo cultures from Greenland to Southwestern Alaska, yet has received relatively little attention from northern archaeologists. This mode of transportation likely emerged in the last 1500 years and was a necessary element in the mobile subsistence strategies and social networks of historic Eskimo societies. An understanding of the effects of adopting dog traction is necessary for analyzing prehistoric societies that preceded and came after its development. The increased mobility conferred by the use of dogs likely had effects on functional and stylistic variability in archaeological assemblages, the costs of resources and means of procurement, settlement strategies, and other aspects of Eskimo culture. Keywords: Mobility strategies, Cultural ecology, Prehistoric change INTRODUCTION The use of dogs as draft animals to haul sleds, or mechanisms have been equivalent—the actual movement dog traction, is one of the traits universally identified with of people has controlled the flow of information and re- Eskimo culture. Despite the centrality of this mode of sources across the landscape, by foot or by other means transportation in the societies and economies of Eskimos of travel. from Greenland to southwest Alaska, surprisingly little attention has been given to its inception and the roles it In the prehistoric Arctic there have been two non- played in those systems. This is particularly interesting pedestrian modes of transportation: water travel and dog given that it is widely held that dog traction is a relatively traction.
    [Show full text]